Blockade Adani II - The power of Nonviolent Direct Action
Below is a collection of images from my first campaign experiences with nonviolent direct action. Words by Rowan Tilly with a link to the quoted video at the end.
“Non-violent direct action, in its entirety, right from the get go when you start to plan it, right through to the very end when you come out of prison… the whole thing is a dialogue”
“There’s dialogue in the planning - your motivations, your fears, your objectives. Then you get arrested - there’s more dialogue in the police station, and between the action and the press, what gets said about it, and it continues through the court.”
“The whole thing takes place as a dialogue and you’re inviting judgment, you’re inviting people to say what they want to say and say what they think about what you’ve done. So that’s a really important part of nonviolent action, to see it as a dialogue.”
“If it is effective, it will have an element of confrontation in it.”
“We tend to associate confrontation with violence, but it doesn’t need to be violent. It’s creating a tension, and that tension allows the dialogue to take place that will effect change.”
A business owner blocks in activists vehicles using his truck
A delivery driver stops by to share his views
“As an example of that tension that we’re trying to create, if you imagine of a musical instrument, if the strings of that instrument are too slack, you won’t get a note out of it. If they’re too tight, it’s unbearable, you can’t hear it it sounds tinny”
“So to make music that tension has to be absolutely right. And it’s the same with non violent direct action, you need to get the tension of the confrontation absolutely right”
“The confrontation feeds into the dialogue and the dialogue feeds into the confrontation”
“The subtle difference between being non violent and not being violent. It’s a subtle thing. Think of being at the bus stop and nobody is talking. That is nobody talking. Think about a buddhist retreat where the people are ‘in silence’ - it’s a different thing, it’s a different quality of silence. The quality of silence has a sense of intention. It’s the same with non-violence, theres a quality to the people sitting on the bridge or whatever they’re doing - the sense of intention is palpable, people pick up on it. There’s a positive thing happening there”
"Why nonviolence? According to research on conflicts between non-state and state actors around the world between 1900 and 2006, it was found that 53% of nonviolent campaigns were successful as opposed to 26% of campaigns that used violence.
Moreover, of the violent campaigns, 95% had descended into dictatorship or totalitarian rule within five years. Basically if you want a chance at effective change against the state, non violence is the way to go.
“Here is the true meaning and value of compassion and nonviolence: when it helps us to see the enemy’s point of view, to hear his questions, to know his assessment of ourselves. For from his view we may indeed see the basic weaknesses of our own condition, and if we are mature, we may learn and grow and profit from the wisdom of the brothers who are called the opposition.” - Martin Luther King Jr
A brilliant introduction to the theory of nonviolence, from which the words quoted by Rowan Tilly are borrowed
Democracy and nonviolence in action
Engineering contractor GHD is one of the largest contractors for the Adani mine. Recently more than a dozen protests were held outside GHD offices nationwide. Internal accounts and leaked emails suggest the company is in ‘crisis mode’ after employees have put pressure on management questioning their involvement with the mine. Over 60 contractors have pulled back from working with Adani across finance, insurance, engineering/construction and coal haulage. Pressure on contractors works.
Prime minister Scott Morrison pledged to crackdown on ‘selfish and indulgent’ environmental groups. He argued that the ‘secondary boycott’ campaigns such as those targeting Adani’s contractors are a threat to the mining industry and the economy. The Human Rights Law Centre has labelled the Prime Minister’s plan “deeply concerning,” saying the move could weaken protesters' rights. Tension was created, highlighting an issue, from that tension dialogue emerged - both of the viability of the mine and the governments ties to Industry
These are ‘lock-on’ devices. An arm in put in each end then the protestor clips onto a rod through the middle, locking onto machinery or a railway or whatever and immediately preventing operation. To remove them they need to be cut off. They are highly effective, non violent protest devices.
The QLD government recently passed ‘dangerous attachment devices’ law, criminalising the use and possession of the devices. In passing the law the premier cited an unverified incident that occurred 14 years ago where police cited a device had been laced with a butane canister When asked at a public hearing about the incident, the police officer, who is considered an expert on attachment devices, could not confirm nor provide evidence to substantiate the claim.
For more information on the history of these devices and the passing of the law, I recommend reading this insightful article written by Andy Paine.
https://frontlineaction.org/repeat-a-lie-often-enough-lock-on-laws-passed-in-parliament/
And lastly, some reminders of what we’re fighting for
Camp Binbee
Colonisation continues to this day. I’m still learning of the depth and breadth of this destruction. A book I’m yet to read but have been recommended is ‘Decolonising Solidarity’ by Clare Land. http://decolonizingsolidarity.org/book/
It's likely that more than half the world population of southern black-throated finches is found on the Adani lease. "These birds will die if the mine goes ahead, simple as that." - Sean Dooley, Birdlife Australia
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-05-03/how-is-a-tiny-bird-such-a-big-problem-for-adani/11076386
Horseshoe Bay in Bowen, about 45 mins from the blockade camp
Alligator Creek just south of Townsville
Blue Winged Kookaburra
“Nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon, which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it. It is a sword that heals”